My Stay at the Bedford Lodge Hotel and Spa

As a regular spa goer I always set my standards quite high, with my sights set on a luxury experience and an excellent array of facilities to enjoy a day of relaxation. A little over a fortnight ago now I had the pleasure of visiting the Bedford Lodge Spa as a gift from a close friend of mine. I couldn’t wait to visit this particular spa as it’s fairly close to my home city of Cambridge and is the only ‘5 Bubble’ rated spa in East Anglia. It’s safe to say my expectations were high.

And the spa did not disappoint. We pulled up to a stunning Georgian style white building with luscious green grounds surrounding it. High ceilings and large windows made the spa entrance feel light and airy, with a grand staircase to welcome. To the right hand side was a gorgeous spa lounge, which I’ll get onto later! We were greeted by the friendly spa staff and a glass of champagne, after a few sips we then headed through to store our belongings into one of the spa lockers.

My very first impressions of the spa were ‘wow’. Immaculately clean (hygiene is extremely important to me), gorgeous interior décor, attentive staff and lots of amazing facilities. We couldn’t decide what to try out first, but eventually agreed on the hydrotherapy pool and headed off to take a dip.

The hydrotherapy pool was the perfect experience, set in a room with tall glass windows the view was simply stunning. We lazed back and enjoyed the water jets, easing the tension in our necks and shoulders. We spent a good hour in here, chatting away and enjoying the various water experiences!

We finally managed to drag ourselves away, and both agreed that the sauna was a good idea. The sauna and steam room areas of the spa are spacious and very relaxing. Again, extremely clean and due to the spaciousness of them, were not crowded like some spas can get. We spent around half an hour enjoying these experiences before heading off for our treatments.

To start, I had picked out the sixty minute candle massage. Our treatment ladies collected us from the waiting area and led us to our individual treatment rooms. My candle had already been picked out to match my birthstone (I thought this was a particularly nice touch) but I could choose another if the scent wasn’t right for me but I was happy with the choice. The candle was poured onto my back which was a strange but enjoyable sensation. My masseuse was very attentive and discussed any areas I wanted to focus on and the pressure I wanted her to use. Everything was just right and I felt the knots in my muscles unwind as I drifted off into a sleep.

I never wanted my massage to end, but I knew I had another exciting treatment lined up afterwards! My 60 minute Espa Pro Facial was fantastic. After discussing my skin type, products were selected based on my skin type. My skin felt vibrant and glowing after my facial and there was even a free fifteen minute shoulder, neck and scalp massage whilst my mask was on.

After our luxurious treatments it was time for some food, by this point I was quite hungry! We wandered over to the stunning spa lounge. The menu offers a wide variety of sandwiches, salads and paninis as well as healthy juices and smoothies. I treated myself to a slice of the chocolate fudge cake which was just heavenly!

After our scrumptious lunch we headed back into the spa and into the Decadent relaxation room to kick back and let our paninis and chocolate cake digest before heading up to the rooftop hot tub for a final wind down. The rooftop hot tub is definitely one of the spa’s main attractions, and I can see why so many people find it appealing. It was lovely to breathe in the fresh countryside air whilst soaking up the warm bubbles with a glass of champagne in hand.

I couldn’t have been more impressed with the staff, facilities and overall feel of the Bedford Lodge Spa, and you can also stay at the spa’s adjacent four star hotel too. Next time I will definitely be making a weekend of it!

Tilly is a UK fashion, lifestyle and travel blogger at tillyjayne.com and also writes for various other publications. You’ll find her wandering around her local city of Cambridge, blogging, or planning the next adventure!